Being my travels down those great two lane highways of this nation as well as news I learn about them from media sources. Since I'm also very interested in historic preservation, there will be a lot of that as well.

Tuesday, August 30, 2016

Owners of the Bangor, Maine, Howard Johnson, David and Sally Patel, have kept the business going the last four years as business slowed. They are now down to just breakfast and lunch. They note that the hotel side of the business is doing well, though.

Fortunately for HoJo fans, the Lake George, New York, one appears to be on solid ground and is open year-round.

They are even planning some renovations for this winter.

Walter Mann, of New Haven, Connecticut, said he and other HoJo fans still hold out hope that an "orange knight" will step forward and revive the restaurants. "A lot of people have warm, fuzzy memories of a more innocent time," he said. "People certainly crave for something like that to bring back the good memories."

Monday, August 29, 2016

Before falling on hard times, Howard Johnson took restaurant franchises to a new level. The orange-roofed eateries once numbered more than 800, with the New England-based restaurant chain predating all those Howard Johnson hotels.

Howard Deering Johnson started the business in 1925, when he inherited a soda fountain outside of Boston. that evolved into a chain of restaurants featuring comfort food and 28 flavors of ice cream. The orange roof with its blue spire represented a dependable place for travelers to park the family car, grab a meal and spend the night.

The one closing in Bangor, Maine, the Howard Johnson Restaurant and Lounge, in its heyday, was popular with travelers and locals alike, including horror and science fiction author Stephen King, who lives in Bangor. He said he used to eat there often and enjoyed the patty melts and milkshakes.

Friday, August 26, 2016

The closing of one of the last two Howard Johnson restaurants in Bangor, Maine, in a couple weeks will mark the end of its fried clam strips, ice cream and other menu staples that nourished baby boomers and leace the once all-over-the-place restaurant chain on the brink of extinction.

The slice of roadside Americana will no longer be served up there after September 6.

The closing will leave just Howard Johnson restaurant located in Lake George, New York.

Monday, August 22, 2016

The late Bill Friday was president of the University of North Carolina for 30 years and host of North Carolina People on UNC-TV. He was also famous for his peanut brittle.

He admits that he borrowed it from his wife's family and is chock full of peanuts with only enough sweet candy to hold them in place.. Starting around Thanksgiving every year he would make up around 75 pounds of brittle for holiday gifting.

Friday, August 19, 2016

Sonker is the signature dish of Surry Conty. This large, juicy cobbler can be made with almost any fruit, and even sweei potatoes. During the sunny days of spring, it is hard to beat warm strawberry sonker topped with a generous pour of the sweet, milky sauce known as dip.

There is even an annual Sonker festival at the Edwards-Franklin House near Mt. Airy sponsored by the Surry Count Historical Society the first Saturday in October. To guide folks through the rest of the year, someone mapped out a Surry County Sonker Trail.

Looks real good, but I don't know if I would have room for sonker after eating one of those great porkchop sandwiches at Snappy Lunch.

JULY 13-- Chicago plans Route 66 birthday party for Saturday on Jackson Boulevard in Chicago. This is put on by the Illinois Department of Tourism. Hopefully they will; do it by the "Start of Route 66 sign." A Route 66 mural is planned for the site.

JULY 20-- Funks Grove Maple Sirip is featured on the Illinois-Made series on TV. This is put out by the Illinois Office of Tourism.

JULY 22-- Frog Rock, always a favorite "see" for me, was officially added to the federal geology site. It is located east of Waynesville, Missouri.

JULY 26-- Former Cafe on the Route is up for sale in Baxter Springs, Kansas. We ate there a long time ago and the food was some of the best I ever tasted.

Thursday, August 18, 2016

As I mentioned in my August 11th post in this blog, the Summit Inn at Cajon Pass, California, was sold on June 27, and I was hoping the new owners would keep it going as it was. Now, they won't get that chance. It was destroyed by that wildfire blazing away near Los Angeles.

Wednesday, August 17, 2016

First, I went to the Rally By the Lake at the Fox Lake Lakefront Park on Nippersink Lake. There were probably 75 classic and sports car there. A whole lot of them were GM cars from the 60s and 70s, so I especially enjoyed them

Then, I dropped Liz off at the St, John's Parish fest in Johnsburg and drove into McHenry and bought a Kinks and Mothers of Invention CD at the Vinyl Frontier record store. I went back to Parish Fest and enjoyed the band New Odyssey. It has three guys (the guitar player is an old friend of Liz's) and they, during the course of their show, play 30 instruments. They had just come in from a show last night in Wisconsin and appeared at the Illinois State Fair in Springfield on Monday. Busy guys.

I then went over to McHenry where they had a Keeping the Spirit of '45 Alive ceremony to honor our World War II veterans. It is reported that McHenry has one of the biggest of these observations in the whole country and there were at least 500 people there as well as our sadly dwindling number of veterans from that war. There was the surround taps, a dove release and a big band playing.

Tuesday, August 16, 2016

Definitely had a threat of rain all morning, but not one drop fell. We really need the rain and when it threatens like this, there is no way I'm taking the boat out. I like to float on the water, not have it on me.

We met some of the Usual Suspects (Glen, Barb, Kevin and Kelly) at Cabana's on the Chain on Pistakee Lake at 2:30 p.m., and enjoyed the dueling pianos. A local favorite named Michael Lescher was one of the pianists. Nothing like sitting outside on a beautiful (though hot) afternoon and being entertained while sipping ice cold Miller draft beer (for $7 a pitcher). Real big crowd.

The threatening rain finally left us.

Stopped at Sunnyside in Johnsburg and had a drink.

Then went to the Spring Grove Fireman's Steak Fry at Horse Fair Park. It cost $20 for a ribeye steak, baked potato, corn on the cob, roll, cole slaw and cherry pie. And, for a good cause. Entertainment was provided by jukebox deejays. I really dislike the new group of deejays who just play music off their laptop computers and say nothing except make a rare announcement. Definitely not my idea of deejaying.

Monday, August 15, 2016

We went to Grasslake Landing on Grasslake for our Chain Crawl passport stamp. Sadly, this place is closing on Sunday. We had their Thursday special of half-price pizza and pitchers. Met up with Kevin and Kelly there.

Afterwards, Liz and I went to Antioch, Illinois, for their final It's Thursday concert with a high-energy country band called the Hillbilly Rock Starz.

FRIDAY, AUGUST 12

Did some shopping in McHenry, then went to Sunnyside in Johnsburg and then to the Fox Lake American Legion on Nippersink Lake.

** Someone in the Route 66 Digest e-mail group wants to know if someone has pictures of what John's Modern Cabins looked like when it was a business. I sure would like to see them. I'm well aware of what it looks like since I've been seeing it all these years.

JULY 8-- The Carlyle Motel in Oklahoma City is to become a car lot. Located at 3900 NW 39th Street. Built 1941. In 2013, the new owners replaced the classic sign.

JULY 9-- The Pony Bridge was added to the Endangered Places list in Oklahoma. It is near Bridgeport. In 2016 it was listed on Oklahoma's Most Endangered Historic Places.

It is 3,900 feet long and consists of 38 "pony" trusses. It appeared in the 1939 "Grapes of Wrath" movie.

Thursday, August 11, 2016

JUNE 22-- Unpopular marque returning to Rialto Square Theatre in Joliet, but in the back of the building. I am hoping the financial problems it is having gets cleared up.

JUNE 25-- Route 66 exhibit at the Missouri History Museum begins today. It is called "Route 66: Main Street Through St. Louis" and will run through July 16, 2017. The museum is located at 5700 Lindell Blvd. in St. Louis.

JUNE 26-- Lowell Davis creates a new sculpture on Route 66 in Carthage, Missouri at 125 N. River street. he is a noted folk artist and has several other sculptures already on Route 66.

He is described as "The Norman Rockwell of Rural Art" and opened the Red Oak complex nearby.

JUNE 27-- Summit Inn, Cajon Pass, California, is changing ownership. An interesting place. We ate there in 2006. I'm hoping they keep it the same.

Taken from the Route 66 News site. These are some of its posts, just the ones I am particularly interested in.

JUNE 13-- The L & L Motel in Bloomington, Illinois, torn down On Morressey Drive, not actually on Route 66, actually on US-150, just a block off 66. It had fallen into hard times the last twenty years. Sad, but probably necessary.

JUNE 16-- Gary Mace's Route 66 Car Museum opens in Springfield, Missouri. You can never have too many museums.

JUNE 16-- Berwyn (Illinois) Route 66 Museum may move to a bigger and more historical site on Route 66. New site to be at 6621 Ogden Avenue (Route 66).

Wednesday, August 10, 2016

One colorful story on how this isolated island earned its name involves Blackbeard the pirate. Blackbeard and his crew were anchored near the island and on the run from the British Navy.

Resigned that a battle was imminent, Blackbeard called for the day to begin, pleading "Oh Crow Cock, O Crow Cock."

HAMPSTEAD

This one is sort of doubtful, but a great story nonetheless. After the American Revolution, General George Washington was on a tour of the new country. When he arrived at what is now Hamstead (near Wilmington), they were going to fete him with a shad bake. Unfortunately, the shad weren't running so they had ham instead.

127. The first "Baby Borg" was handed out in 1988. The 18-inch replica of the big one has been given to the winner ever since. Kind of sounds like something Star Trek would fight.

129. A second "Baby Borg" is given to the winning car's winner.

131. The tradition of "Kissing the Bricks" was started by a "Brickyard 40 winner. In 1996, NASCAR's Dale Jarrett and his crew chief knelt down and smooched the "Yard of Bricks" at the start/finish line. It caught on with both 400 and 500 winners. Now, a whole lot of folks kiss those smelly, hot old yucky bricks.

134. The Borg-Warner trophy always turns up at the 500 Festival parade, under heavy security, of course.

135. The Borg-Warner has appeared in two films: "Winning" and "Turbo."

This large lagoon was named by early explorers after the Pamouik, a Native American tribe that lived throughout the shores.

The term "sound" refers to a saltwater lagoon.

ORIENTAL

Originally known as the town of Smith's Creek, Oriental was named after a Union ship that ran aground near Bodie Island in 1862, during the Civil War.

When a post office was established there in 1886, the postmaster's wife felt that a new name was in order. Out beachcombing along the Outer Banks she found the name plate from the wrecked ship and thought it would make a great name for the town.

Since this is a road blog, I will concentrate on his impact in that area.

When Austin Peay took office in 1923, Tennessee had only 244 miles of paved state highways and bridges spanned few of its major rivers.

Under Peay, more than half of the state's total expenditures went to road projects. By the time of his death in 1927, Tennessee's system of paved roads had expanded from 244 to over 4,000, with a paved highway connecting Memphis in the west and Bristol in the east as well as four north-south roads. In addition, there were 17 new bridges over rivers.

Thursday, August 4, 2016

(1876-1927) A successful and progressive Tennessee governor during the 1920s. Although he was just governor for a little more than 4 years, his impact on the state was more than most of its chief executives. He completely reorganized the state government, improved the tax system, reformed education, expanded and improved the state's road system, established the first state park and assured the establishment of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. He also worked with agriculture and improving rural life.

On one of our road trips, we drove through Clarksville, Tennessee, and came upon Austin Peay State University. I had heard of then in the NCAA Basketball Tournament, but had no idea where it was.

There are two other beach towns south of Wilmington which have concerts during the summer, both featuring many Beach Music bands. One really good thing is that they have their concerts on different days. I always hate it when towns hold their concerts on the same day. The Holden Beach concerts are on Sundays.

OCEAN ISLE FREE CONCERT SERIES

Concerts 6:30 to 8 p.m. Fridays in the parking lot of the Museum of Coastal Carolina.

Most of the Beach bands in the previous post will be playing as well as Tommy Black Band and Too Much Sylvia. Every Friday from May 27 to September 9.

SUBSET BEACH CONCERTS

Held Wednesdays at The Village Park from 7 to 9 p.m.. Pretty much the same bands as well as Big Time Party Band, Liquid Pleasure and The Legacy Motown Review.

Wednesday, August 3, 2016

That would be Beach bands as in those who play that great Beach Music. Many bands in the coastal North and South Carolina area, play at least some Beach Music, but these are some of the "Biggies" on the Beach Music scene.

I'll be seeing Jim Quick and the Coastline Band at Goldsboro's Center Street Jam on Thursday.

These concert sites are all south of the Cape Fear River and heading towards the South Carolina Border.

From the July 2016, Beach Scene Magazine: Guide to the Cape Fear Coast (Wilmington, N.C.).

There are weekly concerts all over the area, including Wilmington's Downtown Sundown, Fort Fisher Summer Concert Series, Carolina Beach's Summer Fireworks By the Sea and Boardwalk Gazebo Music, Boogie in the Park at Kure Beach, Arlie Gardens (Wilmington) Summer Concert Series and there will be five concerts at the Surf City Concerts in the Park.

The only one that charges is the Arlie Gardens Summer Concert Series at $9 for adults.

Tuesday, August 2, 2016

Well, Sun Drop Soda Pop was actually invented in Missouri in 1928 by Charles Lazier. A few years later he shared the recipe with his friend Charles P. Nanney, a soft drink bottler in Gaston County, N.C.. Nanney tinkered with the recipe to suit his taste and then added it to his production line.

As his first marketing attempt, he teamed up with Red Bridges, owner of the Bridges Barbecue Lodge in Shelby, who agreed to serve seven-ounce samples of Sun Drop with his barbecue. The first slogan of the bright-yellow, citrusy soda was, "Refreshing as a cup of coffee."

The "Nectar of North Carolina" hails from Salisbury (as does those great Chocolate Uglys). It is made by the Carolina Beverage Corporation and Cheerwine Bottling Company. This is the oldest continuously operated, family-owned soft drink company in the United States.

Because Cheerwine is not a wine, this sometimes confuses people. The name comes from its red color and the "cheerfulness" its drinkers get. The original label said, "It's full of good cheer."

Poke cake is so-named because you puncture the cake with several holes and then pour syrup, gelatin, or other sweet liquid into the openings. (I have to admit I was wondering just what a poke cake was.)

For this recipe, you use 1 and 1/2 cups of Cheerwine (not diet).

Reckon With All the Other Stuff In It, You Don't Have to Worry About Anything Diet. --RoadDog

This phamacy managed to survive the opening of an Eckerd Drug across the street. The Eckerd's is now closed. A power lunch would be an orangeade, crinkle cut fries and a hot dog.

SUTTON'S DRUG STORE in Chapel Hill

"The consistency of the ice is key. Crushed ice holds all the flavor. It melts and dilutes the sugar, and it really makes it colder. The best thing about it is you get to eat the crushed ice when you're done,' says owner Don Pinney.

They no longer sell drugs, though.

DEE'S DRUG STORE in Burgaw

Opened in 1916. The business has been sold and will be moving to a nearby Piggly-Wiggly but the soda fountain won't be going with it. It is unclear what will happen to it. This will happen in the fall, so there is still time to get your treats.

I am thinking of stopping by on my way back to Goldsboro in a few days.